Get the inside tip with America's number one radio show about language, A Way with Words
Dictionary definition of “hype man”

hype man

n. a hip-hop performer responsible for backup rapping and singing, and increasing an audience’s excitement with call-and-response chants. Subjects: , ,
Comments? | Cites | Permalink | Tell a Friend
Citations: 1988 Lee Hildebrand San Francisco Chronicle (Apr. 3) “M.C. Hammer Nails Down A Royal Reputation” p. 42: Hammer and the Posse, a group consisting of four dancers, two DJs and one “hype man” (“He’s the guy who pumps the crowd up,” Hammer explained), hope to win over rap fans. 1995 Richard Payton Usenet: rec.music.hip-hop (Aug. 30) “Re: Suge Vs Puffy”: Puff is up on stage with Biggie rappin’ almost as much as Biggie.He’s not just the “hype man” on stage goin’ Yea Yea, he’s rappin’ whole verses. 2004 Jordan Harper Riverfront Times (St. Louis, Mo.) (May 26) “I Love a Parade: Radar Station hitches a ride with great big rappers”: Hype-men, for those of you unfamiliar with the lingo, are the fellas you see at rap shows who stand next to MCs and bellow certain words along with the rap to add emphasis.
Posted 3 Jun 04 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Leave a comment (must be approved by the moderator before it will appear).

Name (mandatory):

Email (mandatory):

Location (optional):

Your Web Site (optional):

Remember my personal information

Notify me, by email, of follow-up comments.

Recent Catchwords
macaroon technique n. (2/19)
sorry gift n. (2/19)
break the ton v. phr. (2/19)
ghost shift n. (2/17)
stock n. (2/13)
startle factor n. (2/13)
hair crush n. (2/13)
seagen n. (2/13)
rollup n. (11/30)
simming n. (11/8)
nimbleton n. (11/6)
kitchen n. (11/6)
skuke n. (11/6)
parlor n. (11/6)
broccoli journalism n. (10/19)
strap hanging n. (10/8)
parclo n. (10/8)
Dipper n. (10/8)
jeggings n. (10/5)
dittoism n. (10/5)
 More catchwords...
Lexicographer's Rules
New verses to “My Darling Clementine” (4/19)
How do you pronounce “both”? Please take the survey! (3/9)
Garbanzos or chickpeas? (3/4)
Buzzwords of 2009 in the New York Times (12/20)
A note found inside Birds of the Pacific Coast (12/16)
Now accepting nominations for the 2009 “word of the year” and the 2000-9 “word of the decade” (11/15)
How much underworld slang is still used from 80 years ago? (10/27)
Remembering William Safire (9/27)
The elephant in the language (8/12)
Updates will continue to be slow for Double-Tongued (7/19)
 More blog entries...
Find A Word  »
 A   B   C   D   E 
 F   G   H   I   J 
 K   L   M   N   O 
 P   Q   R   S   T 
 U   V   W   X   Y 
 Z   0-9 
Search
Search Site

Google Site Search
Recent searches:
New Comments
Lance Hidy commented on flymph (3/23)
sunnyboy0 commented on seagen (2/12)
Trafficman2 commented on parclo (2/12)
paul Teague commented on Taig (2/5)
paul Teague commented on Taig (2/5)
vickie commented on moded (1/5)
midsummer commented on gleek (1/3)
to run away is to Die In Tragedy commented on robotripping (12/4)
TheAnalyst commented on mouth-breather (12/4)
Peter Williams commented on strap hanging (10/30)
hebotick commented on sorry gift (10/18)
urbanclothingguy commented on sorry gift (8/20)
Lolo commented on vacationship (8/17)
teresag commented on pump head (8/3)
kcjones007 commented on wooby (7/15)
Subscribe to the RSS feed. • Subscribe to the mailing list. • Browse the archive. • Add to Technorati Favorites. • © 1999-2012 by Grant Barrett, Double-Tongued Dictionary.